James Smith’s Info Serv

Author: Tantawi Sagara

Life is about choices and the decisions we make. Life is like a road. There are long and short roads; smooth and rocky roads; crooked and straight paths. In our life many roads would come our way as we journey through life. There are roads that lead to a life of single blessedness, marriage, and religious vocation. There are also roads that lead to fame and fortune on one hand, or isolation and poverty on the other. There are roads to happiness as there are roads to sadness, roads towards victory and jubilation, and roads leading to defeat and disappointment.

Just like any road, there are corners, detours, and crossroads in life. Perhaps the most perplexing road that you would encounter is a crossroad. With four roads to choose from and with limited knowledge on where they would go, which road will you take? What is the guarantee that we would choose the right one along the way? Would you take any road, or just stay where you are: in front of a crossroad?

There are no guarantees

You do not really know where a road will lead you until you take it. There are no guarantees. This is one of the most important things you need to realize about life. Nobody said that choosing to do the right thing all the time would always lead you to happiness. Loving someone with all your heart does not guarantee that it would be returned. Gaining fame and fortune does not guarantee happiness. Accepting a good word from an influential superior to cut your trip short up the career ladder is not always bad, especially if you are highly qualified and competent. There are too many possible outcomes, which your really cannot control. The only thing you have power over is the decisions that you will make, and how you would act and react to different situations. Wrong decisions are always at hindsight.
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Author: Harlan Goerger

The scenario: You have an appointment with a major client. The potential need is there and the match is right for your product.

As you walk into to meet the client for the first time, you’re not sure you really like or even trust this person. The conversation continues and for some reason you keep feeling something is not right. This client does not seem to be engaging with you, the trust issue is still coming back to you and the idea of the client lying or being other than forthright is on your mind.

The conversation ends with no real result; both parties seem to be cautious about proceeding.

What is happening here? What strange secret is at work that we do not understand?

The answer is Body Language, yes, some 70-80% of our communications is through Body Language, yet some 60% of Body Language is misread or misunderstood!

With so much at stake in our sales and leadership encounters how is your Body Language and what is it saying?

Here are some quick tips to keep in mind.

First, let’s understand something about Body Language. Most Body Language is subtle, under the radar if you will of most people. This is not just about crossing arms or leaning back. This is about the subtle changes in our facial features, body movements and how our body reacts to emotion. (By the way, we all do, it is not in our control).
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Author: William Drapcho

Your well being should be a priority in your life, yet so many of us place our health on the back burner, leaving it unattended until it boils over on us.

Health seems to be something that’s largely taken for granted. We feel invincible until it fails us. This is clearly the wrong attitude. If you take preventative action, you’ll not only feel better, but your body will thank you by adding years onto your life!

Improve your Health for the Right Reasons

Nowadays many Americans are overweight. As a result, more people than ever are trying to slim down. The problem is a lot of us aren’t trying to lose weight for the right reasons. If you need to lose weight, be sure to do it for yourself, not for anybody else.

Losing weight goes far beyond the superficial. Don’t lose weight only in order to look good, but for your overall health and wellness.

When you try to improve yourself for other people, you can lose sight of your motivation if your relationship changes. The motivation needs to be within you, not someone else. The deeper your commitment to your health, the more difficult it is to cheat on a diet or forego exercise.
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Author: Jenny Flintoft

In the 1920’s, some friends of Ernest Hemingway bet him that he couldn’t write a story in 6 words. Hemingway responded with: “For Sale: baby shoes. Never worn.”

Now, does that tell you the whole story? No. Does it get you curious? Yes. Absolutely. And there will be some people who will go down a negative route when considering what that story may mean; others will choose a more positive route.

What is your story? What does it tell? Is it the story you want, or the story you feel you’ve been left with?

Being part of a story that inspires you can lead to you feeling more Fired Up. Having a story that drags you down, or one you feel disappointed with, definitely won’t. Often we continue to be the lead in a story that really isn’t us, that really doesn’t suit us. I don’t mean you have to be the hero of an action story, or the lead in a romance – you just have to feel that the story of your life that is playing out in front of you is one you’re happy to see unfolding before you and to be part of. Here are some six word stories I’ve heard from other people:
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Author: Mary Lloyd

Copyright (c) 2009 Mary Lloyd

There’s an amazing variety of choices we make by default day after day that it might be good to think about. We also make a lot of choices by default because we assume there really isn’t a choice. We assume we have to keep THIS job because we need A job. We assume we must stay where we are geographically simply because it’s where we are today.

Making choices this way is the meek way to live. It means you never consider anything beyond what you already know, what you already do, what you are already comfortable with. It also means that you feel “stuck” with what you are doing—a “victim of circumstance” rather than captain of your own destiny.

The truth of the matter is there are always alternatives. Much of the time, they’re so unappealing we never consider them. To be sure, there are some choices where the alternatives really are unthinkable and making the choice again and again would be silly. I choose to breathe. Not breathing doesn’t look like a real good idea to me. I also choose to rest, eat, and drive with care. But letting most of your life run on autopilot is cheating yourself.
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